Theory

The Best Way To Revise Driving Theory

Right, so it’s about high time you did your theory test, but you don’t know where to start with preparing and revising for it.

We decided to review your options:

The “Official” Route.

The DVSA are the ones who create your theory test, so they probably provide the best ways to revise for them right? Well, maybe. They certainly provide the most expensive ways to revise for your test. They also provide far too many options, and it can get pretty confusing.

Gov.uk recommends the DVSA and (not surprisingly) the DVSA recommend the DVSA. Is this government propaganda or helpful advice from the experts?

How to prepare for your Driving theory for free:

There are practice questions on safedrivingforlife.info. These are pretty rubbish. You don’t discover which questions you got wrong until you’ve answered all 50 and then they don’t explain WHY you were wrong. Learning is going to be limited and slow by this method.

Rating 1/5

The app route:

So this is definitely a step up. Official DVSA Complete Theory Test Kit You pay £4.99 for the iPhone app and in return you receive practice tests which include official DVSA explanations of questions you get wrong. It also includes the holy grail: hazard perception tests.

There are very few other places to practice these, and it is often the hazard perception that catches pupils out even if they are excellent at memorising answers to the question section of the test. £4.99 is far from free but is much cheaper than the £25 you’ll pay for a second theory test if you fail.

Only downside is that the app is only available on Apple products, not Android, which is a real bummer, otherwise I’d give their App 5 stars.

Rating 4/5

“I believe DVD’s still exist” route

Yes, DVSA still sell their classic DVDs for questions and Hazard Perception. You can get both in a bundle on amazon.co.uk for £15. It definitely isn’t the cheap option, but you do get 100 hazard perception clips (the app has far fewer) and all the best qualities of the App. It is pretty much all you need if you have £15 to spare.

Not a DVD fan? You can digitally download the same ‘kit’ from the DVSA site for more or less the same price.

This is a great option if you want to do your best to ensure you pass your theory test first time. But there is not much of a price difference between buying this or failing your first test and buying a second. DVDs and downloads lose points then for being pricey.

Rating 3/5

The book-worm route:

Yes, DVSA have books and no, you do not want to buy them. You are looking at parting with £10 for no hazard perception practice and too much information to memorise. Buy the Highway Code cheaply if you are going to be living in a place without any electronic equipment before your test. Otherwise, it’s pretty unnecessary.

Rating 1/5

The “addicted to subscriptions” route:

If you already pay monthly subscriptions to BT, Vodaphone, Amazon Prime, Spotify, Netflix and Twitch, and you can’t wait to get another, then DVSA provide an amazing service. If not, then it’s debateable.

The online subscription to their “Learning Zone” is £12 per week or £15 per month for exactly the same material as you can download for £15 from safedrivingforlife.info. The safedrivingforlife.info download is for keeps though and you don’t have to pay it more than once. If you want to do all your revision in one week you can save £3, otherwise this is a waste.

Rating 2/5

The Non-official Route:

Just because it's not official doesn't mean it is necessarily a dodgy back alley. They are definitely worth exploring

The alternative app route:

Focus Multimedia stole the spotlight in 2015 for the best theory test app, awarded by Auto Express magazine. The app costs £2.50, contains all the questions, info and official explanations of where you answered incorrectly that you’ll need. The only thing it lacks is Hazard Perception practice. But at £2.50 this is a steal.

Rating 4/5

The BEST Method route:

TheoryPass.co.uk offer access to 27 hazard perception videos and 32 practice tests (50 questions each) for just £4.99 for 6 months. If you’re really keen you can get even more for £8.99 for 12 months. It’s way better value for money than anything DVSA offer and should see you safely through your theory test without spending a fortune. Not an official provider, but by far the best.

Rating 5/5

The Verdict:

Theorypass.co.uk offer by far the best way to practice for your driving theory if you don’t have a lot of cash to spare. I reckon they are the all-round winner for this review.

If you are determined to be official, get the DVSA app if you have an iPhone or iPad, it’s still pretty cheap.

If money is not an issue download the “Official Theory Test Kit” from safedrivingforlife.info. You’ll pay through the nose, but it’s still cheaper than a failed theory test.

Of course if a friend has the DVD, you could borrow it and not spend a penny!